Mark Achbar Movies
- 2011
- NR
As humanity basks in the glow of a century of unprecedented technological progress in the early years of the 21st century, a growing number of scientists wonder if we're really as well off as we imagine. While the world has a remarkable range of products and services at its disposal, we also have a dwindling supply of un-renewable natural resources, an environment damaged by global warming, a faltering global economy, and large parts of the world are demanding a First World standard of living while the nations that created it are struggling to keep their heads above water. Has the world become a victim of its own desire for progress? Filmmakers Mathieu Roy and Harold Crooks examine the price we are paying for years of short-term advancement with little thought of long-term consequences in the documentary Surviving Progress. Featuring interviews with Stephen Hawking, Jane Goodall, David Suzuki, Margaret Atwood, Jim Thomas and many more, Surviving Progress offers a sobering look at how unchecked science and economics have taken the world down a dangerous path, and what can be done to create a more sustainable future. Adapted from Ronald Wright's book A Short History of Progress, Surviving Progress was an official selection at the 2011 Toronto International Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- 2009
The five great lakes in the American Midwest -- Lake Erie, Lake Huron, Lake Michigan, Lake Ontario and Lake Superior -- represent one of the largest supplies of fresh water on Earth. Nearly twenty percent of the world's fresh water is contained in the Great Lakes, and thirty-five million people count on the resources they provide. But as years of industrial pollution take their toll and lax enforcement of environmental regulations continues, it has become increasingly evident that the safety of the Great Lakes can no longer be taken for granted, and that action must be taken now to see that this valuable legacy will be available to future generations. Filmmaker Kevin McMahon captures the beauty of the Great Lakes, follows the path of water from Lake Superior to the Atlantic Ocean, details the environmental issues at stake, and makes his case for proper stewardship of our resources in the documentary Waterlife. Narrated by Gord Downie of the rock group The Tragically Hip and featuring music by Sufjan Stevens, Brian Eno and Sigur Ros, Waterlife was an official selection at Toronto's 2009 Hot Docs Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
Water is one of the most common things on earth, but the supply of it on this planet is finite, and as the world's population expands, the demands of industry and commerce increase and pollution fouls more and more of our natural resources, potable water is no longer as easy to find as it once was, and many believe that it will become a valuable strategic commodity with the passing of time. Filmmaker Sam Bozzo examines the growing battle over control of the global water supply in the documentary Blue Gold: World Water Wars. The film examines how major corporations and financial institutions are buying up territories where large water supplies can be found, the fight to protect the Great Lakes, allegations that one of the world's most powerful political families is attempting to corner the market on water in Paraguay, and what ordinary citizens can do to keep the water supply free and shared fairly by all. Based on the book by Maude Barlow and Tony Clarke, Blue Gold: World Water Wars was an official selection at the 2009 Palm Springs International Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Malcolm McDowell
- 2008
- Add Fierce Light: When Spirit Meets Action to Queue Add Fierce Light: When Spirit Meets Action to top of Queue
At a time when the environment is in severe crisis, the division between the rich and the poor is become more extreme than ever, and war is a grim fact of life in much of the world, the need for activists to stand up and try to show the world a better way is greater than ever. While progressive political groups and social workers are doing their part, leaders of the alternative spiritual movement are also bringing their voices to the cause, acknowledging that making a better world may begin within one's self but it can't and shouldn't stop there. Filmmaker Velcrow Ripper offers a look at the new wave in spiritual activism and the people who are using their voices and hearts to make a difference in the documentary Fierce Light: Where Spirit Meets Action. Featuring interviews with Bishop Desmond Tutu, environmental activist Julia Butterfly Hill, author Alice Walker, actress Daryl Hannah and Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh, Fierce Light was an official selection at the 2009 Palm Springs International Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
In the mid-1800s, corporations began to be recognized as individuals by U.S. courts, granting them unprecedented rights. The Corporation, a documentary by filmmakers Mark Achbar and Jennifer Abbott and author Joel Bakan, delves into that legal standard, essentially asking: if corporations were people, what kind of people would they be? Applying psychiatric principles and FBI forensic techniques, and through a series of case studies, the film determines that this entity, the corporation, which has an increasing power over the day-to-day existence of nearly every living creature on earth, would be a psychopath. The case studies include a story about how two reporters were fired from Fox News for refusing to soft-pedal a story about the dangers of a Monsanto product given to dairy cows, and another about Bolivian workers who banded together to defend their rights to their own water supply. The pervasiveness of corporate influence on our lives is explored through an examination of efforts to influence behavior, including that of children. The filmmakers interview leftist figures like Michael Moore, Howard Zinn, Naomi Klein, and Noam Chomsky, and give representatives from companies Burson Marsteller, Disney, Pfizer, and Initiative Media a chance to relay their own points-of-view. The Corporation won the Best Documentary World Cinema Audience Award at the 2004 Sundance Film Festival. ~ Josh Ralske, Rovi
- Starring:
- Jane Akre, Raymond L. Anderson, (more)
- 1993
- Add Manufacturing Consent: Noam Chomsky and the Media to Queue Add Manufacturing Consent: Noam Chomsky and the Media to top of Queue
The Canadian documentary Manufacturing Consent: Noam Chomsky and the Media presents a lengthy, detailed look at the political beliefs of celebrated intellectual Noam Chomsky. Casting only passing glances at Chomsky's groundbreaking work in the field of linguistics and his eventful life, filmmakers Mark Achbar and Peter Witonick instead focus on his activities as a political dissident and media critic. Particular attention is paid to his contention that the American mass media serves as a form of "thought control in a democratic society," with major news organizations systematically bending the truth to support the status quo. Chomsky defends this belief in numerous public appearances, lectures, and debates, siting as examples the widely divergent media treatment of genocidal activities in Cambodia and East Timor and the unquestioned acceptance of America's Gulf War policy. While opposing viewpoints and rebuttals are sometimes aired, the filmmakers quite clearly are in general agreement with Chomsky and even include humorous visual illustrations of his political theories, utilizing stock footage, on-screen diagrams, and the like. Despite its clear favoritism, the film nevertheless succeeds in making a thought-provoking case for these ideas and provides an intriguing glimpse into the life of a complex, driven thinker. ~ Judd Blaise, Rovi
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